Absolute Altitude
by LanaDrama
Summary: A private jet, a strand of pearls, two hours to kill … the friendly skies will never be the same again as Lucius finds the most creative method in helping Hermione overcome her flight fears. Follows the events of Valentine Surprise. Lucius/Hermione. Adult readers only, please.


**Thanks to the loveleebee for the request and fervent insistence that _Valentine Surprise_ warranted a sequel. Although this is only a small taste of it, the sequel is on the way. Let me know what you all think!**

* * *

There was no good time to broach some topics. Hermione's irrational fear of flying was one of them. Especially as she and Lucius were only half an hour away from Heathrow Airport. Ever since the Italian Ministry put monthly quotas on the uses of magical means of travel across its borders, they had no choice but to take the fastest option available: air. Which meant flying. In a metal deathtrap. And that wasn't even the most dreadful part.

"Miss Granger, you've been unusually quiet. Having second thoughts?" Lucius asked her, scrutinizing the traffic through the rain-misted window of the car the Ministry sent for them.

She was so wracked with nerves that she hardly touch her breakfast this morning, yet nausea still rocked her body each time the car lurched forward. It took all of her concentration to appear calm while mentally preparing herself. Over and over, she kept repeating to herself how the Ministry selected their private jet from a trusted company and hired a crew with the best safety rating in the country. Nevertheless, all these facts did nothing to calm her.

"Of course not," Hermione meekly replied.

He raised his eyebrow at her. "You're tense and pale, and you haven't touched anything at breakfast. Now something is bothering you, tell me what it is."

Why? There was nothing, absolutely nothing, he could do about it.

"Nothing's bothering me," she lied.

Now he looked thoroughly annoyed. "You're lying. You suck your lips in right before you do it, as if you're trying to hold it back. Now you know how I hate repeating myself, so start talking."

Smiling, she tried to change the subject, "I never told you this, but you're incredibly handsome when you're bossy."

He gave her a hard look. "I'm always handsome. Now stop avoiding the issue at hand."

"I'm not too keen on flying. I'm terrified, really," she reluctantly admitted.

Lucius tried to sound reassuring, "Our journey will be very short. Rome is only two hours away. We'll be there before you know it."

She gave a slight shake of her head. "Duration is irrelevant. There is always the takeoff. The air pressure is the worst on my ears and on my jaw. One time it hurt so much, it felt like someone hit me. It happens during the landing as well, only not as intensely."

Reaching into his overcoat, he produced a white velvet pouch. "I have a gift that may help to _somewhat_ alleviate your fear of flying." He tipped it into his hand and the most beautiful strand of pink pearls spilled onto his palm.

She smiled at Lucius. "Oh, Mr. Malfoy, they're beautiful!" Hermione exclaimed. "I've never owned any pearls before." She caressed the round jewels with her fingertips.

"I'm glad you like them. They'll look beautiful against your skin," he complimented her.

Hermione wasn't sure how they were supposed to solve any of her flying problems, but she didn't really care.

"If you want to see them against my skin, you'll have to wait until we get to Rome. This dress," she gestured to the cable knit sweater dress that she wore under her coat, "is not showing any skin."

"I didn't mean for you to wear them on your neck," he remarked. "Spread your legs."

"No," Hermione harshly whispered, glancing at the direction of the driver. "You can't mean that."

"But I do." His tone barred any argument.

"How is this supposed to help me?"

"Trust me. Now spread your legs," he ordered.

She inhaled deeply and complied with his command, knowing that her obedience would be rewarded. He slid his hands up her legs, tickling her skin through the hose of her thigh highs.

"You're not wearing your knickers again, Miss Granger. Why is that?" His voice had an edge to it. He already knew the answer.

Hermione felt early arousal coating her entrance."For you, Mr. Malfoy."

"And why would you need to do that for me?"

"So you could touch me without anything in the way," she answered, her voice tremulous.

"Thoughtful gesture, Miss Granger, though a wholly unnecessary one. If I want you, I can have you. Only one word will stop me."

"Yes, I know." She moaned when he touched her. "How do you make me want you so much?"

He didn't respond, not in words at least. Instead, Lucius rolled the pearls against her sensitive folds. The beads delicately pressed against her clit; their cold hardness presented an exquisite contrast to the warm wetness pooling between her thighs. When he slid one finger inside her, she sighed his name, her inner muscles clutching tightly at his digit. She wondered what he would do. He always surprised her so easily.

The wait was short. Lucius withdrew his finger and coiled the pearl strand all around it.

"You can't be serious…" she uttered, guessing where this might lead. Involuntarily, her legs splayed further apart.

"You should know better than to question my motives by now," he warned. Before easing his finger back into her.

Her head fell back against her leather seat as Hermione gasped and moaned, squirming as each row of pearls glided deeper inside her.

"I must not be fucking you often enough if you're still so tight," Lucius casually remarked, moving his digit inside her, rolling the pearls right over her g-spot.

Hermione bit her lip to stifle her cry. "You are so vulgar. Do you always say such things?"

His eyes sparkled in amusement. "Politeness has no place in the bedroom, my dear."

She grinned. "We're not in the bedroom. We're in the car."

"Semantics bore me," he said and slid his finger out, leaving the pearls behind. He stopped touching her completely.

"Um… what is the meaning of this?" she asked.

"Oh, look, we're here." He directed his attention to the scene out the window.

 _Who cares?_ Hermione fumed.

"Bu-but wh-wh-what about … _this?_ " she stammered.

"Leave them where they are," Lucius coolly instructed her.

"What's the purpose of that?"

He gave her one of his wicked winks. "You'll see. And no matter what, you are not to come until I allow it."

* * *

Hermione swallowed another curse as they passed through security clearance and made their way to their gate. It was so hard to act calm and collected when the pearls continuously shifted inside her, causing spontaneous bursts of pleasure as they rubbed against her g-spot.

"Are you even listening to me?" Lucius asked her.

"Yes, of course." She nodded, trying to ignore the torment of her flesh.

"What did I say?"

Like she could pay attention!

Her thighs trembled as the heat inside her became more intense. She desperately wanted him to relieve her of the ache inside her — to fill her with his cock and pound her into the mattress. Her muscles tightened at the image in her head.

"You … um … were saying something about … Rome?" she guessed, not caring if she was right or not.

"Nice guess, but you're wrong." He placed his arm around her, as he guided her outside onto the tarmac where the plane was waiting.

Hermione stared at the stairway to the jet. Now way was she about to climb all those stairs. Standing and walking was torture enough. She looked at Lucius with pleading eyes, but he was merciless. Every step was pure agony. His hand reached up to give her bum a squeeze. She threw him a glare over her shoulder and increased her pace. If she even concentrated on his touch for one second, she was sure she was going to crumble into a mind-blowing orgasm. By the time she made it all the way up, Hermione thought she'd faint.

The crew politely welcomed them onboard the beautiful jet. It was set up with two rows of plush seats then opened up into a more spacious black and beige sitting area with a plush couch. Farther out she could see a dining area.

"So is there a bed here somewhere?" Hermione half-joked.

He smirked. "Not on this plane. We'll have to join the Mile High Club the old-fashioned way."

Her eyes lit up at his words, but he remained passive. He helped her out of her coat and Hermione sat in her seat, fidgeting with her belt buckle. Lucius took out important-looking parchments and began reading. The nerve of him! How could he just idly sit by and enjoy her pains of frustration! Sadist!

When the plane finally took off into the sky, Hermione was so miserable from want that she forgot to chew her gum to help with changing air pressure. In fact, the ear popping wasn't even so terrible this time and her jaw didn't hurt at all. Perhaps it was simply a matter of having a more experienced, higher rated pilot. Or perhaps that's how it always felt on a private plane. She didn't know exactly what accounted for the difference, but didn't care because she couldn't enjoy the new experience anyway. The ascend caused the pearls to slip around her again, sending jolts of pleasure through her. Gripping the arm of her seat, she let out a low moan, which Lucius promptly ignored. Even after they've reached their cruising altitude, he continued to read his documents. Once in a while, waves of turbulence would cause her to bump and jostle in her seat, distributing more darts of sensation into her body.

The urgency built so much in her that Hermione couldn't prevent herself from begging him, "Mr. Malfoy, please."

"Not yet," he refused, still engrossed in his papers.

"You're a sadistic bastard, Lucius Malfoy!" she insulted him. If asking politely wasn't going to get his attention, maybe a more forceful tactic would.

"And you're a whiny Mudblood. What's your point?"

She sniffed. "It's really not fair. You're asking me to stave off something I hardly be expected to control while you do everything to make the task near impossible. It's like you want me to fail."

"You know what to say if you want it to stop," he taunted her.

"Hell no! I am not going to give you the satisfaction, you pompous prick!"

"Sticks and stones, dear."

It really irritated Hermione that neither pleas nor insults seemed to be working on him, so she tried another gambit. Slipping one shoe off, she drew the arch of her foot up along his leg. He tensed slightly, but made no comments. Her foot moved higher to his thigh, and higher still along the bulge in his trousers. How could he look so unaffected when he was just as aroused as she was?

His hand suddenly grabbed at her ankle, twisting her leg just shy of pain.

"You like provoking me, don't you?" he growled at her.

"You should know by now how stubborn I am," Hermione whimpered. "Normally, I have no objection to your games, but my infinite patience is running thin today." The pressure building inside her was almost too much. She knew her climax wasn't far.

"You are a petulant little thing, Miss Granger."

"It's all your fault too."

He set his parchments aside. "You must allow me to rectify the situation then." With swift movement, he grasped her leg and yanked her off her seat to straddle his lap. Before Hermione could react, his firm lips molded themselves to hers. She ground into his lap, mewling with pleasure at the contact with his hard cock combined with the constant stimulation of the pearls. She rocked against him and her climax suddenly hit her. Her cry of ecstasy was silenced by his lips and tongue as he deepened the kiss. Another shock of desire shot through Hermione when the familiar notes of his aftershave flooded her olfactory senses as he continued to skillfully ravage her with his demanding mouth. That scent of his! How did she ever live without it?

The combination of his scent and his taste of spearmint and something else that was uniquely Lucius Malfoy on his tongue drove her wild and Hermione reciprocated by capturing his tongue with her lips and sucking hard on it. He groaned against her mouth and one hand found its way into her hair, while another gripped her thigh.

"You have disobeyed me," he grunted when they both gulped for air.

"Punish me when we land," she said, desperately kissing him again. He responded thrusting his tongue deep into her mouth in promise and imitation of what his cock would soon do to her.

Letting go of her mouth, he stood up and half-dragged her to the couch area. He looked ready to take her right then and there.

Pushing her to sit down, he kneeled before her, eager to see his handiwork. "Show me."

She grasped the hem of her dress and raised it to her hips, revealing her puffy folds to him.

With skillful tongue, Lucius scooped one pearl from her, sucked it into his mouth and tugged on the strand. The pearls whirled inside her before finally slipping out.

"Now have I ever left you unsatisfied?" he asked.

"Almost," she snarled at him, but grateful to be freed of her torment.

He rose up to tower over her and made a great show of slipping the necklace into his pocket.

"And what makes you think you deserve your satisfaction now?"

Hermione was aghast. "Because you promised! And I've done everything you've asked me." He gave her a skeptical look. "Okay, okay, almost everything, but I couldn't control my physiological response under so much stimulation. Sometimes I feel like you just want to hear me beg you. It's humiliating except, in the moment, I don't care but afterwards…" Her voice trailed off and she sniffled.

She felt the cushion next to her dip and saw him take a seat beside her. One arm went around her shoulders.

He cupped her chin. "Look at me."

Her eyes automatically snapped to his.

"I don't do that to embarrass you," he explained. "It's so erotic to hear how much you want me. I know you're reserved in your desires so when you're vocal, it's the ultimate compliment to me." His silver eyes heated as he looked her over. "I believe I have some amends to make for my grievous offense."

He leaned over her, pushing her hard into the couch cushions. His dominating lips claimed hers once more in a soul-searching kiss. His tongue passionately probed and delved into her mouth, earnestly exploring her as if for the first time.

His hand slipped into her pussy, stroking her between her folds with his nimble fingers. This time her release wasn't violent and all-consuming. It was more like a slow-burning fire, it travelled through her blood, and reduced every limb to ash until she lay completely sated beneath her lover. Lucius gave her some time to recover before pulling her up, but Hermione fell across his lap, turning her face up to his. There was only him, above her and below her. Only he existed. He stared back at her, then reached down to stroke her hair. A chill ran down her spine and she closed her eyes. Through his trousers she could feel his erect cock, swelling more as she rubbed her cheek against him.

Hermione wasn't certain what to do next. She wasn't particularly good at this, but surely he expected this of her. But he never made any move to unzip his trousers. He simply ran his hand through her hair. They stayed that way for quite some time. All of Hermione's nerves and uncertainly drifted off into space. There would be time for questions later, right now she wanted to bask in this tender moment. She didn't want it to end. Hermione wanted to remain on his lap forever where she was warm and safe.

After a while the hardness in her cheek became more difficult to ignore. Her sense whirled as she felt him throb against her. She wanted it. She wanted to take his cock into her mouth and bring him as much pleasure as he had given her. Her hand reached to his belt, but Lucius caught her wrist and stopped her. Hermione blushed. Was it wrong?

He ran his thumb over her lower lip. "Come with me," he said, lifting her gently off his lap.

He guided her to the back of the plane where the light was dim. She looked back at him and saw a predatory flicker in his eyes. For the first time, she noticed that the dinning area and the second powder room were guarded off with a velvet rope, but Lucius ignored it and ushered her past it.

"We're not supposed to be here," she rasped.

He answered by tightening his hold on her. Never at peace when it came to breaking the rules, Hermione tugged on his arm in protest, but he pushed her roughly inside the small space of the loo. Storming and terrible, he laid siege to her throat.

"W-we can't." Hermione placed her hands on his shoulders and gave him a light shove. Except she didn't want him to stop. Her body still smoldered for him. They haven't made love all week and Hermione needed to feel his magnificent cock inside her again.

"What if we get caught?" she whispered. "What if they'll hear us?"

"No one will disturb us. Trust me." His voice in her ear was a dark, ominous overture. It stirred something strange in her. His voice, his scent, his touch — everything about Lucius Malfoy seemed to be devised to arouse her. But she always wanted more of him. The trouble was, even when she got what she wanted, Hermione wanted even more. Always more. She never knew how to curb this craving.

He returned to her lips, capturing them in a series of cruel kisses. Then he ripped his lips away, kneeled, and raised up the bottom of her dress all the way to her ribs. Hermione gasped at the unexpected motion. He was rough, but deliberate. Every movement precise as he backed her against the wall. The cold tiles dug roughly into her shoulders, but she didn't care. Lucius placed a soft kiss on the skin below her navel before hoisting her off the ground; Hermione's bare thighs straddling his shoulders.

She yelped in surprise, but he remained unfazed as he held her there, pinned between the wall and his body. Completely trapped and vulnerable. His hand ran over her body: squeezing her breasts, then caressing her waist, until they sank down into the flesh of her bottom. Raising his eyes to hers, he slowly ran his tongue along her inner thigh, traveling higher to her dripping core. Hermione whimpered as a tiny tremor rocked through her, nearly causing her to collapse forward, but Lucius held her still and pressed her harder against the wall.

"Patience."

Oh how she wanted to obey him! How Hermione longed to hear the approval in his voice as he called her his _'good girl'_! She had already disobeyed him once on this flight and she wasn't about to do it again. She could float on his shoulders, with his mouth on her all night if that's what he asked of her.

When Hermione thought she'd wither from the interminable wait, his tongue flitted over her clitoris and she was lost, soaring through the layers of atmosphere and rocketing into outer space.

His name left her lips, "My God, Lucius." Hermione wasn't sure if she was pleading him to continue or to stop. It didn't even matter, because she wasn't going to say the one word that would put an end to it all. She liked him tormenting her with pleasure – liked how easily he could manipulate every cell in her body.

He continued to devour her. Deeper and deeper his tongue delved, making her head spin to the point where she felt drunk. Her fingers dove into his hair, clutching a fistful to help Hermione maintain her balance. It was becoming quite an obsession of hers — his glossy blonde hair that she could grab and pull every time he gave her oral pleasure. He growled at a particularly sharp tug and dragged his strong tongue even more vigorously against her slick walls. Hermione almost howled at his change of pace, but caught herself. She needed to come again, only with him inside her this time. She didn't want to reach the highest altitude of her ecstasy until his cock was filling her to the hilt.

Every breath burned her lungs as she said, "I want you."

Lucius didn't stop. He spoke with his lips still upon her, "No. Tell me exactly what you want me to do to you."

Fury and frustration shook her body and a stray tear streamed down her cheek.

He wanted to make her say it. He wanted her to speak the vulgar, desperate truth.

"I want you to fuck me." She almost squealed out when his tongue lashed across her clit.

Abruptly, he rose up, his hands reaching out to hold her before she could slip down. Her legs snaked around his hips. He whirled her away from the wall and set her down onto the sink counter. Hermione winced as she felt her tailbone bruise. The confined space was the worst place for any sexual activity, but at least crew members were unlikely to hear anything in this part of the plane.

Lucius released his cock from his trousers, and Hermione sharply inhaled at the sight. The flushed thick length of it always fascinated her. Before she could spent too much time looking at him, he grasped her thighs and entered her in one smooth motion. In one silent cry, Hermione felt the volume of all the air in her lungs spill out. As usual, there was nothing gentle in his passion. He lifted her off the counter and pinned her once more against the wall. She tried to run her hands through his hair, but he clasped her wrists in his hands and held them fast against the cold tiles above her head. Hermione tried to lean in to kiss him, but Lucius left her lips woefully alone. Her legs griped him to her, as her hips pulsed to receive his every thrust, even though his plunges were out of harmony with her own undulations. Just like in his study, he meant to have all that he wanted of her without any help on her end, and Hermione surrendered to him, relishing in being helpless, in being under his control. His chest pressed into hers as he moved within her, crushing her breasts under his hard pectorals. Every time he withdrew, Hermione started to suffocate. It was as though she needed him to control her vital functions. Lightheadedness hit her. Lucius always set off this tortured euphoria in her. It was like Fiendfyre, burning every oxygen bubble in her blood, and there was no way to extinguish it. He burned as well as he sank harder and harder into her. Beads of sweat glittered on his forehead and brow. His puffs of breath hot across her neck. Then his cock struck against the tender, restive spot inside her, cleaved into it. She cried out, but he stifled the sound by kissing her, smothering it before it could be heard.

Her body quaked. Hermione's senses left her. She felt herself sailing through the air, straddling the last vestiges of Earth's atmosphere before rapidly crashing back down again. The whole time she still felt Lucius moving in her, pummeling and powerful. His flesh rippled and stirred inside her. His mouth left hers. His eyes, fierce and freezing, glinted at hers. His gaze tore through her like an iceberg, demolishing all that was in its path. Freezing, burning, freezing again. Her waves of orgasm continued to sweep through Hermione, drowning her beneath them. It was the longest orgasm of her life. When it finally receded, he stilled in her as well, spilling himself inside her. The storm was over, the last dying waves washed over her as she collapsed against the shoreline of his rigid chest. All she could do was pant and tremble. She didn't know how long she remained in that position. The entire time, Lucius held her, high off the ground — on his cock and in his arms.

Against her cheek, Hermione could hear his heart, its beat steady. How powerful his body was! Unlike hers … so weak she could hardly feel her limbs.

At last, Lucius lowered her to the ground and she gratefully leaned against the wall, tugging down her dress. She heard the water running and assumed he must be washing up.

A wet washcloth was pressed to her forehead, then to her temples, and all around her face. All Hermione could do was stand and watch him. She wanted more. More of his hands, his lips — more of the rest of him. With a gentle kiss to her neck, Lucius moved away.

"Come," he said, "we wouldn't want our flight attendant to come looking for us, would we?"

Hermione could hardly find the words, so she just nodded. Something about his tender treatment gave her hope that this was more than lust. What was happening between them wasn't an ordinary attraction.

He drew open the door and guided her back to the front of the plane. Drained and sore, Hermione slumped into her seat and fastened her seatbelt, the last traces of adrenaline evaporated from her body. Lucius sat down next to her, picked up his papers, and continued reading as though nothing had happened.

Exhaustion washed over Hermione. Her cheek fell against his shoulder and she fell asleep. The next time she opened her eyes, she saw that their plane had landed and was slowly moving into its designated space on the tarmac. She couldn't believe she slept through the entire landing process.

" _Benvenuta a Roma_ ," Lucius whispered in her ear.

"We're really here?" she asked.

He nodded. "We're really here. The world is our oyster, Miss Granger, and each day a new pearl."

Blushing at the mention of pearls, she looked out the window. All around her were the usual sights of an airport complex, but all she could see was her new life and how exciting it would be with the special wizard by her side.

* * *

 **All roads lead to Rome, but where will their road lead them?**

 **Find out soon in _Beauty in the Ruins_ where our favorite couple embarks on ambitious endeavors, navigates through a delicate political situation, and explores all the delights Italy has to offer. In the land of romance, it's hard not to fall in love … but will they risk complicating each other's lives?**


End file.
